When interpreting ground reactions forces, 8ctane Baseball and I analyze: the timing of the max vertical and horizontal forces, the impulse of the forces overall, and the magnitude of the ground reaction force that is occurring midway between footplant and ball release.

To break these down further…

When searching for ideal mechanics, syncing up horizontal and vertical forces is crucial. Peaks occurring simultaneously ensure maximum force creation, maintaining a stable trunk position and preventing front leg collapse through ball release.

The impulse of the force curve should resemble a clean up and back motion on the GRF graph. As I stated in my previous post, Visualize it like taking a half-court jump shot. A clean up and back motion in the GRF graph’s impulse curve mirrors the efficient power transfer needed to send the ball effortlessly to the basket. It’s all about creating that single, powerful motion with the legs.

Now the hardest thing for pitchers to sync up: the timing of these max forces. We deem any force produced after the max layback will not have enough time to travel up the body and act on the ball. Referring back to the half court shot analogy, you begin to push into the ground with your legs, but you shoot the ball before you’ve ever left the ground, resulting in leftover force occurring with no effect on the ball. This is the most common inefficiency we see in pitchers at all levels of play.

The last variable is how much force are pitchers producing in the lead leg. A majority of pitchers produce a magnitude ranging from 2.4 to 2.7 times their bodyweight, however; pitchers with elite front legs and mechanics can produce around 3.1 times their body weight — a testament to the importance of both strength, stability, and mechanics.

This is just the tip of the iceberg – in both ideal ground reaction forces and pitching mechanics as a whole. Join me in the coming week as we delve into the multitude of variables influencing these ground reaction forces.